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AndroidOperating system · Google

CVE-2023-20721

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-05-15
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
In isp, there is a possible out of bounds write due to improper input validation. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with System execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation. Patch ID: ALPS07162155; Issue ID: ALPS07162155.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

A bounds validation error in the isp (image signal processor) component allows an out-of-bounds memory write, potentially enabling local privilege escalation. The vulnerability requires System-level execution privileges to exploit and needs no user interaction.

MitigationApply patch ALPS07162155 to address the improper input validation in the isp component.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
AndroidOperating system
Affected:= 12.0= 13.0
YoctoOperating system
Affected:= 4.0

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify the Android OS version
    Run 'getprop ro.build.version.release' or check Settings > About Phone > Android version
    Affected if The version is exactly 12.0 or 13.0
  2. Identify the Yocto Project version
    Check /etc/os-release for VERSION_ID or run 'cat /etc/yocto-release' if present
    Affected if The version is exactly 4.0
  3. Verify ISP (image signal processor) component is present
    Look for isp-related kernel modules or libraries. On Android check /vendor/lib/ for libisp* or camera ISP drivers. On Yocto check /lib/modules/ for isp.ko or similar ISP driver files
    Affected if The ISP driver or library file exists on the system
  4. Confirm system privileges
    Determine if the analysis account has root/system-level access by running 'id' or 'whoami' and checking for UID 0 or system group membership
    Affected if The account has root or system-level execution privileges (UID 0)

The system is affected if it runs Android 12.0 or 13.0, or Yocto 4.0, AND has the ISP (image signal processor) component present, AND the potential attacker has system-level execution privileges.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply patch ALPS07162155 to address the improper input validation in the isp component.

Fix this in Android Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
17.0 hours of engineering $3,000
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-20721 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data